DIY Painted Back Bookcase

When you’re renting your home like me, it can be difficult to decorate exactly the way you want. Sometimes you’re allowed to paint the walls, but only if you paint them back to their original color when you leave, which might not always be worth the effort. However, you can alter the things that already take up your wall space to give the illusion of depth and contrast that you’re going for.

Painting the back of my existing bookcase made a huge difference. I bought the BILLY bookcase years ago from IKEA (which can be found here) and it came with a white particleboard/cardboard removable backing. Let me tell you: painting the back of this bookcase gave my living room an instant upgrade. And the best part? It only took a half hour from start to finish, including drying time.

No need to go out and buy a new bookcase for this project. If possible, use what you already have. For mine, I didn’t even have buy paint. I have an abundance of plain, old acrylic craft paint that I mixed together to get the color I wanted. You don’t have to use paint either – contact paper, fabric, or pieces of scrapbooking paper work just as well.

I won’t waste your time with listing the materials and instructions for you. Simply paint/cover the back of your bookcase and let dry. Ta-da!

Don’t have a bookcase to paint? Try hanging some large scale art like this Vintage Wall Map. You could also cover part of a wall with a grid collage of different-sized framed art or photos. If you really want to create a lot of depth, make that grid collage out of different mirrors instead. Hanging a large tapestry or putting up a wall decal are other great ways to liven up your space without getting out the paint brush.